"But the main reason to go to Barcelona was to see Marianne Cornetti as Azucena. After her unforgettable Fidès in Essen, she again portrayed and sang a mother figure of great allure. Cornetti sang in an interesting production of Joan Anton Rechi. Cornetti really has no competition in this role. When this Azucena sings about the execution of her mother, the hairs on your arms stand up. And when she proposes her son return to Biscaya, there's nothing left to do but cry silently. And of course, that royal and voluminous sound! The Spaniards adore it, like their paella. And so do I."Read the full review...

"Among the female protagonists undoubtedly reigned the colossal Azucena by Marianne Cornetti , overwhelming on the scene and endowed with a powerful vocal instrument, cleverly exploited."Read the full review...

"From the cast of this occasion, the most complete and overwhelming artist was undoubtedly the American mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti. Although somewhat bitter material, by timbre and color, she is an astute and skilled interpreter, capable of intense and vibrant phrasing...And we must take off our hats in any case before a lady who sings with that delivery eight times in just twelve days."Read the full review...

"The equally large role of Fidès requires a mezzo-soprano/alto with a wide range and a lot of vocal power. Marianne Cornetti, costumed as a somewhat suffocating but homely matron, sounded wonderfully warm throughout, and her voice seemed able to meet the role’s high demands tirelessly."Read the full review...

"The biggest surprise came from the fides of mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti...She was with her immense voice superior in the coronation scene...With ease she sang her beautiful low to its higher echelons. A unique singer. The star of the evening."Read the full review...

"...mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti won over the audience (and this reviewer) with her hilarious rendition of the pivotal Mistress Quickly. The difficulties of the role, with its many notes in the low register and physically challenging split-second timing, are often overlooked; Cornetti made it look and sound easy, with consistently rich tones and expertly played shenanigans."Read the full review...

"Mistress Quickly is an 'over the top' role, which mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti pursued with relish. It's been a decade since I saw Cornetti as Azucena in this theater. Her Quickly, much of whose role lies low in the mezzo register, proved to be another impressive achievement in Verdian singing."Read the full review...

"Marianne Cornetti has sung the role more than 180 times and put all her experience into a detailed, moving characterization, astutely judged for the concert stage. If her timbre did not sear itself into the memory, her vocal command of this redoubtable role was complete."

"For most of its course, this work seemed to “star” the mezzo-soprano soloist as the bearer of most of its message. Mezzo Cornetti rose to the role with fine, arching lines, her voice consistent in quality from the highest to lowest notes and in all dynamics from tenderest "Read the full review...

"In Marianne Cornetti, we had a sensational Azucena. She has sung the role throughout the world and her assumption of the part at this performance was total. She delivered a masterclass in concert performance: singing entirely from memory, she dominated the stage, writhing and glaring and somehow making one forget that Azucena must win the prize for worst mother in the whole of opera. Her voice is enormous...and her higher register remains as fresh as ever. Cornetti handled the top notes with ease, displaying fine breath control and particularly exquisite raw colouring at the lower levels."Read the full review...

Il Trovatore Reviewby Hugh Canning, Sunday Times - February 29, 2016

"Marianne Cornetti, a big-voiced American who has sung Amneris at Covent Garden, was the audience’s favourite for her barnstorming style, tempered, admittedly, with some delicacy in Ai nostri monti."

"Cornetti opened the recital with “Dich, teure Halle” from Tannhäuser in tribute to the hall. A true dramatic mezzo soprano, Cornetti has an easy, thrilling upper extension to her voice, and gave a vibrant, ringing account of this Wagner favorite. She is an opera singer and makes no bones about it, devoting the first half of the recital entirely to arias. “Strida la vampa” and “Condotta ell’era in ceppi” from Il Trovatore and “Entweihte Götter” from Lohengrin are among Cornetti’s calling cards in opera houses around the world. (She just returned from a triumphant run of Ortruds in São Paulo, Brazil). All were beautifully sung, but the two highlights were “Voi lo sapete” from Cavalleria Rusticana and the seldom heard, but oft recorded, “Ô ma lyre immortelle” from Gounod’s Sapho."Read the full review...

"Acclaimed as "Specialized Households of Azucena", the American mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti gained once again the full-house applause with her Drama Bones in Last night's Il Trovatore. "Stride la vampa " revealed the twisted world inside this women's heart. Hearing that aria by such incredible and powerful voice of Cornetti's, the audiences were deeply dragged into her world and the misterious fate of Azucena's captured all of them."

"Equally lush was Marianne Cornetti’s voice in the mezzo-soprano tour de force aria from Saint-Saëns’ Samson et Dalila, presented to its best advantage in its lower and middle range. She showed great dramatic flair in the duet from Verdi’s Don Carlo..."Read the full review...

Un Ballo in MascheraOpera News by George Hall - December 18, 2014

"Marianne Cornetti’s convincing lower register helped her access all the notes in Ulrica’s part with a satisfyingly forceful impact, and she was distinctly game in her less than entirely serious characterization."Read the full review...

"Yet the strongest voice in the production belongs to mezzo Marianne Cornetti, who holds down two roles. Yes, she's the witch in the final act, but her version of Hansel and Gretel's mother is even scarier, for she displays the earmarks of an abusive parent, the kind of loose cannon who inspires considerably more fear than affection in her children. By contrast, Cornetti's witch is clad in a bright yellow, red-polka-dotted "Pagliacci"-style clown outfit that makes her none too daunting. Once we're in her kitchen -- which she commandeers as if hosting a cooking show -- it never feels as if a happy ending is too far away."Read the full review...

"Dramatic mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti began with an intense account of “Voi lo sapete” from Pietro Mascagni's “Cavalleria Rusticana,” and was in superb voice throughout."Read the full review...

A night of intrigue and outrage: La Gioconda at the Deutsche OperBachtrack by Christie Franke - February 5, 2014

"As Laura, his lover, Marianne Cornetti owned the role of this noble woman in an unhappy marriage, her voice big and full, rising effortlessly to the challenge of her arias and ensembles. The cat fight with Gioconda over Enzo, “E un anatema!... L’amo come il fulgor creato”, was particularly well-rendered."Read the full review...

"Musically, the production was generally strong with excellent singing especially from mezzo-soprano Marianne Cornetti (Abigaille)... Cornetti sang with power and consistency across the vocal range – equally at ease in her vengeance cabaletta in Act II and her moving final aria of repentance."Read the full review...

Verdi: Aida The Royal Operamusicalcriticism.com by Dominic McHugh - April 28, 2010

"The loudest applause of the night was saved for Marianne Cornetti's Amneris, and rightly so. It's amazing that through such cumbersome headdresses and make-up, Cornetti was still able to create a vivid character and present a threat to the Aida-Radames relationship. Her singing was impassioned and incisive, and she commanded the stage at several moments: highlights included the duet with Aida in Act 2, when the revolving stage was at its most effective, and the trial scene, which drew heavy cheers from the audience."Read the full review...

A cut-price tour of Egypt offers a Nile without styleDaily Mail.com by David Gillard for MailOnline - April 30, 2010

"The biggest cheers were reserved for American mezzo Marianne Cornetti, whose formidable Amneris was a heavyweight blast from the past."Read the full review...